This Studio Apartment Bathroom’s Bold Makeover Follows the “3 C’s” for Interior Design

published Aug 13, 2024
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Even a cookie-cutter studio apartment can be transformed into a layered, personalized home through some smart DIY tweaks. 

Interior decorator Barbara Campbell (as she previously told Apartment Therapy in her home tour) takes cues from the “3 Cs” when it comes to decorating her 300-square-foot studio apartment: “colorful, comfortable, and curated.” 

Giving her “tiny” bathroom an update was no exception. 

Credit: Susan Phillips
Credit: Erin Derby

The whole bathroom became brighter and bolder. 

When Barbara first moved in, her bathroom featured bare white walls and dated, dark brown fixtures. To liven the space up, she covered the walls using Quadrille’s “Puccini” wallpaper, which features a stunning pink-and-white floral pattern. 

Next, Barbara opted to freshen up the fixtures by painting the large bathroom mirror and the vanity’s body using Benjamin Moore’s Black in high gloss and giving the top of the vanity a top coat of Benjamin Moore’s Simply White in high gloss. She also had a brand-new toilet, sink, and hardware from Ferguson NYC installed, and she says the new fixtures also “give it a boost.” 

A glass shower door makes the room feel larger.

Space is often an issue in studio apartments, and Barbara’s bathroom was no exception. The shower’s original design posed a problem.

“There was a shower curtain and rod in place,” Barbara says. “That cut off the space and made it look even smaller than it is. So I installed a glass door to open things up a bit.”

The bathroom — with the same square footage — looks so much bigger and brighter than before, and it’s completely personalized. To see the rest of Barbara’s cozy, colorful studio, check out her full aparment tour.